It was a bad news, good news day for the Boston Red Sox on Friday in Ft. Myers.
The bad news is that J.D. Drew was hit by a pitch on his hand and was sent for x-rays. The good news is that Drew should be okay after the x-rays were negative. The other good news includes the outing from Clay Buchholz in the Red Sox 11-4 win over the Pirates, Dustin Pedroia’s return to the lineup and Jason Varitek hit another home run.
After having to leave the WBC with a strained abdominal muscle, Superman Pedroia had been chomping at the bit to get back onto the field and into a game. He got his chance yesterday as he went 1-for-2 with an RBI before leaving the game. Pedroia said he felt great but that today would be the bigger test in seeing how he felt after playing.
I felt good. I think the biggest thing is to see how I feel tomorrow, if I’m not sore or anything like that. I definitely want to take it slow, do all my treatment and stuff. It was good to get back on the field, get a couple at-bats and get back in the game rhythm, but tomorrow is probably the biggest day. (We’ll) see how it feels, hopefully I’m not sore, hopefully Sunday I can get out there and play again.
It’s good to see Pedroia back on the field and being able to play. Hopefully he feels great today and is back on the field on Sunday when the World Champion Phillies come to Ft. Myers.
The Captain had himself a whale of game on Friday afternoon against the Pirates as he 1-for-2 with a 3-run blast that went over the bleachers in right field. He finished with 4 RBIs in the game. Actually it was a great day for the catchers as George Kottaras added a 2-hit day and had 2 RBIs to boot. Chip Ambres added 2 RBIs on a 2-run blast in the 7th for the Sox. Paul McAnulty led the Red Sox with 3 hits and added an RBI to the cause.
Clay Buchholz got the start for the Red Sox and had another great outing. He went 5 innings, throwing 70 pitches. He gave up an unearned run on 4 hits and a walk while striking out 3. His spring ERA now stands at 0.66. Jonathan Papelbon had a rough afternoon as he gave up 2 runs on 3 hits and a walk while striking out the side. Takashi Saito worked an inning giving up a run on 3 hits while Hideki Okajima gave up a hit in his inning of work. Fresh back from Team Puerto Rico, Javier Lopez struck out 1 in his one inning.
The Red Sox head over to Jupiter today to take on the Florida Marlins at 1:05 PM. The game will be televised on NESN and can also be heard on WRKO on your AM radio dial. Michael Bowden will get the start for the Sox. Jason Bay is the lone regular making the trip across the state.
It should be an interesting game on Sunday night as Team USA will take on Japan at 8 PM on ESPN in the World Baseball Classic semifinals. Red Sox pitcher Daisuke Matsuzaka will get the start for Japan and will be opposed by Roy Oswalt. Matsuzaka is 2-0 in the WBC with a 1.80 ERA and 13 strikeouts in 10 innings
Drew’s right hand is bruised when he’s hit by a pitch [Providence Journal]
Dustin Pedroia, Sox avoid WBC calamity [Full Count]
Oswalt to square off vs. Dice-K [mlb.com]
Papelbon says he’s fine [Extra Bases]
A mound of questions [Ask Amalie]
Father’s Day [Full Count]
Buchholz has that sinking feeling [Full Count]
No injury issues for Papelbon [Full Count]
Scouts are buzzing about Boston pitching prospect Bard [Projo Sox Blog]
Lopez is glad he played for Puerto Rico in WBC [Providence Journal]
Slow-starting Wilkerson hopes his versatility will help him hang on [Providence Journal]
Buchholz is impressive again in five innings against Pirates [Providence Journal]
Review: Jerry Remy’s Red Sox Heroes (2009) [Sports Book Review Center]
Seminary grad now Red Sox chaplain [Louisville Courier-Journal]
